As a writer and theatre enthusiast living in the Amsterdam area, I'd love to be your guide to significant developments and background information from The Netherlands and nearby countries. Despite being a small country, where theatres can't rely on tourists to fill seats, the musical culture is thriving and diverse. International musical theatre mogul Joop van den Ende has his homebase here and musical theatre performers and creatives from the UK and US are often warmly welcomed in the Netherlands to work in (creating) local and international productions.
The Dutch production of SHREK, currently playing the RAI Theatre in Amsterdam, will move to the Stadsschouwburg Antwerp in Belgium for a limited four-week run.
NEW Productions, the company behind the immensely successful 'SOLDAAT VAN ORANJE', has announced its upcoming project, a musical about the Dutch origins of the city of New York.
In recent months, one incident quickly followed another at the Dutch branch of Stage Entertainment: a string of shows was announced and cancelled again, the managing director was replaced twice, and details about the company's internal problems appeared in the press.
The 10th Anniversary World Arena tour of WE WILL ROCK YOU, the Queen and Ben Elton musical, will visit the Heineken Music Hall in Amsterdam from 9 to 12 April 2013.
In response to the news that the UK touring production of DADDY COOL was cancelled, the tour's co-producer Albert Verlinde Entertainment (AVE) has stated it was "surprised by the late decision of the English producers".
Theatre producer and Stage Entertainment founder Joop van den Ende received an honorary doctorate from Nyenrode Business University in the Netherlands.